Canada's insider blog

Our beloved sea otters charmed millions by holding paws while floating on their backs at the Vancouver Aquarium.

With Milo’s death from lymphoma on Jan. 11, both have now moved on to bluer seas.

His partner, Nyac, in the YouTube video that made them famous, died in 2008 from leukemia. 

Tributes are pouring into the aquarium from people who loved to watch the furry, whiskered pair. “Swim free darling Milo… You were a great little otter… the otter tank was always the first exhibit we visited… the sea otters were my favourite by far… so sad to hear about Milo… will miss you…RIP.”

I, too, was charmed by Milo and Nyac; so much so that I made a six-day kayaking trip to Nuchatlitz on the northwest coast of Vancouver Island. It’s one of the best places to see sea otters in the wild.

I’ll never forget the first evening. A group of 50 or 60 otters swam into the bay in front of where we were camped. I watched through binoculars as they floated on their backs, a big jumbled mass of moving heads and paws, eating and grooming until it grew too dark to see them.

The Vancouver Aquarium has other sea otters and other attractions (check out the dolphins), but we’ll always be grateful to Milo and Nyac for sharing their love.